The True Gifts of Christmas - by Megan Alexander (Hardcover)

About the Book

A 25-day journey through Advent about the spiritual meanings behind cherished Christmas traditions to deepen our understanding of the true essence of the season.

Book Synopsis

25 Traditions to Cherish!

In The True Gifts of Christmas, beloved television host and bestselling author Megan Alexander invites readers on a heartwarming journey through the deeper meaning of our most cherished Christmas traditions. With almost two decades on Inside Edition and Thursday Night Football, Megan has built a career centered on connecting people to the stories that matter. Her holiday special Small Town Christmas celebrates small-town communities and the magic of the Christmas season, and this spirit of wonder and discovery inspires The True Gifts of Christmas.

Through 25 festive entries, readers enjoy a heartfelt countdown to Christmas that uncovers the significance behind everything from candy canes and angel decorations to mistletoe and stockings. Each tradition is presented as a daily "gift" with its own backstory, illuminating how these beloved symbols remind us of values like generosity, joy, light, and peace. Megan's warm storytelling style and thoughtful insights reveal the reasons for the season with her fresh perspectives on the cultural and religious origins of holiday customs.

Gather your loved ones, pour some hot cocoa, and let The True Gifts of Christmas take you home to the heart of the holiday season.

Review Quotes

Alexander offers a day-by-day look at popular American Christmas traditions. The author, an actor, TV personality, and self-described lover of Christmas, here provides readers with a series of reflections on some of the season's most familiar rituals. She relates her thoughts on such things as Christmas trees, manger Crèche scenes, wreaths, and the Christmas carol "Silent Night"--one subject for each day of the month of December, leading up to and including Christmas Day. Accompanying these observations are dozens of bright, colorful photos of instantly recognizable holiday staples like happy children, snowy small town Main Street shops, and stills from various productions of The Nutcracker (in addition to smiling shots of the author herself). This emphasis on the spiritual is consistent throughout the text, as when the author notes that the fruit baskets that are so popular as gifts during the season "remind us of God's abundance and blessings."

A wonderfully illustrated collection of thoughts about the wonders of Christmastime. -- Kirkus Reviews

A fun, festive guide to Christmas traditions and their Christian significance.

"It's easy to become so overwhelmed by the gifts on Christmas that we lose sight of the gifts of Christmas," Alexander notes in this festive debut, as she explores different Christmas symbols and their ties to Christian beliefs. To highlight the importance of the season, she offers readers 25 days of Christmas cheer, each one featuring a specific holiday tradition and its religious meaning, ranging from wreaths to Poinsettias to the red cardinals that have become beloved Christmas icons. Alexander also pairs unique activities with each symbol, providing readers with fun ways to incorporate holiday pastimes into their own family traditions.

Beyond the religious themes that Alexander highlights, this joyful guide draws from rich historical references as well, including the origins to The Nutcracker Suite ballet, Wilson Bentley's first-known photographs of snowflakes, and why fruit can signal wishes for prosperity. What stands out the most are her interactive opportunities to truly make Christmas the most wonderful time of the year.

BookLife Review. Publishers Weekly.

Festive and bright, The True Gifts of Christmas is a coffee table book about the cultural origins of holiday customs.

Megan Alexander's festive, faith-based coffee table book The True Gifts of Christmas explores the origins of twenty-five Christmas traditions to encourage a more meaningful holiday season.

Concerned with the significance of iconic Christmas traditions, the book covers topics including candy canes, mistletoe, and the poinsettia in terms of their historical origins and cultural meanings. Crafts and activities to engage with each tradition and cultivate deeper understanding are included; one involves staging a children's candy cane hunt followed by a thoughtful discussion of Jesus, and another is lighting candles in honor of deceased loved ones. Recipes for gingerbread cookies, cinnamon rolls, Christmas punch, and eggnog are included, embellished by Alexander's own Christmas memories, as of seeing The Nutcracker for the first time, and family traditions, such as singing "Happy Birthday" to Jesus.

A warm and informative holiday book, The True Gifts of Christmas excavates the religious meanings and values of a bevy of Christmas traditions.

Foreword Clarion Reviews

About the Author

Megan Alexander is a national television host with nearly two decades of experience on CBS's top-rated, syndicated newsmagazine, Inside Edition. She is the bestselling author of Faith in the Spotlight and two children's books, One More Hug and The Magic of a Small Town Christmas. Visit www.MeganAlexander.com for more information.